Friday night ended up being a random chain of events. I had no plans really, and considered a Blue Jays baseball game. But Goran Bregovic was playing his Balkan beats for a free concert, and that seemed much more important to go to. After wandering by the book store to check in with them, Tino just happened to be at the cafe next door. Charlie from the bookstore introduced me and it was finally great to meet one of the featured photographers in my book face to face.

Tino knew about the concert and decided to go. I’d planned to meet up with a pre-party but Tino said that they were all down at the square where the concert was going to be. So we hopped on our bikes and rode down into Toronto’s version of Times Square on Yonge St. (complete with animated ads running up the sides of buildings). There was a crowd, but we found the party via a trumpet call and a ghetto blaster blasting Roma beats. Once we arrived, I re-met some folks I’d met in Portland last June during the Car Free Conference. They were plenty drunk already, and we all danced our way deep down into the crowd and close to the stage. Guess a boom box of Roma beats spreads the Red Sea for a good spot to dance.Continue reading “Street Art Four Hours Straight”

The Trumbull-Plex presentation went well last night. Jhon showed up with a large platter of Middle Eastern food and began to set up for the show. Nicole Macdonald showed up with a digital projector and her movie “A City to Yourself.” We got things set up quickly, so I found some spray paint in the shop area and sprayed a stencil on Trumbull’s door. Instead of the usual red flags, I sprayed black flags in honor of their philosophical leanings.

We didn’t start on time since no one had showed up at 8pm and Jhon said that everyone felt that 9pm was always the start time at Trumbull-Plex. So the movie began around 8:40, with about 10 people in the comfortable chairs. Third generation Detroiter Nicole’s movie showed scenes of an empty Detroit as she spoke about what the mostly emptiness means to her. She showed fields of grass and flora with rotting houses in them. Some were painted orange by students, maybe in protest to the decay around them.Continue reading “Soggy Drive, Soggy Sneaks”

This is it! The final Stencil Nation tour which will end the Year of Stencils (which began last June with the book opening). What an amazing (road) trip it’s been, giving me hope that humanity is not completely lost in a consumer/TV/Xbox/Twitter haze. All your help, hospitality, support, cooking, schleping, encouragement, and couches/futons/beds can only support the fact that there are amazing people throughout Stencil Nation who see kindness and community within the whole art and graffiti worlds. I am grateful and indebted to you all for all that you have done along the roads that lead to that next stencil!

Many thanks to Janet Bike Girl Attard for setting up a Stencil Nation window at Pages in Toronto. Will be in Toronto June 13 and am looking forward to meeting all the amazing, supportive people up there!